Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News Editorials & Other Articles General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search
 

thejoker123

(279 posts)
Sat Feb 4, 2017, 09:20 AM Feb 2017

Forward to the "both sides are the same" crowd

You can tell all you need to know about the true agenda and priorities of a political party by what they do in their first 100 days in power, when their political capital is the highest it will ever be.

On the same note, my fear and frustration at the moment is that while the media and everyone else is being distracted by Trump's daily insanity, it's the Republicans who control the houses who are quietly starting to pass all the horrific crap they've always dreamed of with little to no media attention.

For example, here are just 5 laws republicans have either already repealed in the last few days, or are about to, all of which the media has almost entirely ignored.

1) The law that prevented mining companies from dumping toxic wastes into streams.

2) The law that required the Social Security Administration to notify the national background check service of individuals so mentally ill and/or crazy that they legally can not handle their own affairs so that they can't buy gun.

3) The law that required oil companies and other resource extractors to disclose payments to foreign governments. This rule was personally lobbied against at the time by none other than Trumps new big oil insider Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

4) The law that forces energy companies to limit methane (one of the most potent gases that causes global warming) and other chemicals released during extraction.

5) The law mandating the federal government not grant contracts to companies who have a history of discrimination and harassment violations, and/or a history of providing unsafe work conditions.


And this is only the beginning, there WILL be much, much more in the next few months, everything from union busting to massive tax breaks for the wealthy to stripping away critical Wall Street and environmental regulations.

Of course this is not even getting into Trump's unchallenged executive orders, like the Muslim ban or my favorite, repealing the Obama Law which simply stated that financial advisors must act in the clients best interest, and not their own.

Now, let's compare that to the priorities of Obama and the democrats (who also controlled the houses). Here's what they did in their first 100 days in 2009;

- Passed the "largest" economic stimulus bill in history, saving us from another Great Depression by temporarily funding schools, giving vital payroll tax cuts to the poor/middle class and creating thousands of infrastructure jobs among other things.

- Passed the Lilly Ledbetter Act, ensuring equal pay for women.

- Issued a $2,500 tax credit to help offset the cost of tuition (among other expenses) for those seeking a college education. Nearly five million families saved roughly $9 billion.

- Expanded the SCHIP program, which expanded the State Children’s Health Insurance Plan to cover an additional 4 million children of low income families.

- Issued a $275 billion housing program which rescued roughly 9 million homeowners from foreclosure.

- Reversed Bush order aimed at limiting union representation on federal contracts and moved to prevent federal contractors from being reimbursed for unionbusting propganda compaigns during collective bargaining.

- Signed an executive order overturning the Bush's ban on project labor agreements on Project labor agreements which set wages and establish work rules and methods of settling grievances on large multi-contractor construction projects (for more than 70 years before the Bush order, project labor agreements benefited communities, employers and workers by ensuring fair wages and benefits and on-time completion of projects).

- Diminished the role of lobbyists in the White House, including an executive order that banned gifts from lobbyists to anyone serving in the administration.

- Lifted Bush's ban on federally funded embryonic stem cell research which scientist believes holds the key to everything from curing Parkinson's and diabetes to paralysis.

- Funded investments into solar, wind and other alternative energy, as well as issued $5 billion to weatherize low-income homes.

- Signed into law "The National Services" bill which provided federal funding for thousands of volunteers in fields ranging from clean energy to health care and education.

- Passed the Public Land Management Act of 2009, putting under federal protection more than two million acres of wilderness, thousands of miles of river and a host of national trails and parks.
Set a fixed timetable for withdrawing U.S. combat forces from Iraq.

- Abolished Bush's torture policies


It's also important to note that Republicans unanimously opposed nearly every single one of these initiatives.

Keep this in mind the next time someone tells you "both parties are the same", or the next time you or someone you know think it's pointless to vote.

It's up to you share this information. Don't expect any help from the corporate media. All they want is bloody political warfare for ratings. Their entire programming is based on the premise that there are two equally "credible" political parties. Two equally credible, yet conflicting, sides to each issue, when rarely is that the case. Their only agenda is not to report news, but simply point the camera at the steel cage match between the two every day.


Source;
https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.businessinsider.com/gop-congressional-review-act-stream-rule-2017-2

Latest Discussions»General Discussion»Forward to the "both side...